Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the rates of teacher retention amongst early years educators.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The turnover rate for all early years educators in private group-based and school-based providers is 16% and 7% respectively. A breakdown by qualification level is unavailable.
To boost recruitment and retention of early years teachers (EYTs) and meet the long-term ambition of having an EYT in every setting, the department will introduce EYT financial incentives worth a maximum of £4,500 per annum to support those working in the most disadvantaged communities. We expect the financial incentives to be available from autumn 2026 and will publish more detail in due course.
We are aiming to more than double the number of funded places on early years initial teacher training courses by 2028 and have introduced a new degree apprenticeship route to help more people become EYTs so that every child, no matter where they live, can benefit from high-quality early education.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Polish counterpart on their membership of the Joint Expeditionary Force.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Poland is a vital UK ally and a NATO member, playing a central role in the defence of NATO's eastern flank and security in the Baltic region. Poland is also a crucial partner in supporting Ukraine, including through military, humanitarian and logistical assistance. Poland is not currently seeking membership of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), but has contributed to JEF exercises through the JEF Plus mechanism.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of mental health and wellbeing amongst teachers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
Supporting the wellbeing of our expert education workforce is critical to this government’s mission to break down the barriers to opportunity for children and young people.
The department tracks teacher wellbeing through the longitudinal study, the Working Lives of Teachers and Leaders. Wave 4 shows improved wellbeing across all Office for National Statistics (ONS)-validated personal wellbeing measures in 2025. Average life satisfaction, happiness, and feelings of life being worthwhile all increased while average anxiety decreased.
Another means by which we commission research is by including ONS-validated personal wellbeing questions in the School and College Voice Survey to capture seasonal differences. The latest data shows that all wellbeing measures remain broadly in line with the same period last year.
The ‘Every Child Achieving and Thriving’ white paper announced £1 million of additional funding each year to provide up to 2,500 leaders with access to a safe and confidential space to develop new strategies to manage their resilience and capacity.
The Education Staff Wellbeing Charter sets out commitments from the department, Ofsted, schools and colleges to promote staff wellbeing. Over 4,300 schools and colleges have signed up.
We are tackling the wider pressures on teachers and leaders. The Child Poverty Strategy, the introduction of our strategy for ‘Giving every child the best start in life’, reform to children’s social care, and the expansion of access to specialist mental health professionals will enhance teachers’ day-to-day experience and strengthen their ability to deliver.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support the mental health of teachers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department takes the wellbeing and mental health of teachers very seriously.
We have worked with the sector to develop the Education Staff Wellbeing Charter which sets out commitments from the department, Ofsted, schools and colleges to protect and promote staff wellbeing. The charter can be used to inform a whole school or college approach to wellbeing. Over 4,300 schools and colleges have signed up.
The department has funded a mental health lead resource hub to support mental health leads which is available here: https://www.mentallyhealthyschools.org.uk/whole-school-or-college-resources/. This includes resources to support staff development and wellbeing. The department also signposts to a range of mental health resources, including Education Support’s free 24-hour helpline.
From 2027, we will be investing £1 million additional funding each year to provide up to 2,500 leaders annually with support to develop new strategies to manage their mental health, resilience and capacity. This builds on our current £1.5 million investment for professional supervision for school and college leaders, delivered by Education Support. Over 1,400 leaders have benefitted since April 2024.
We are tackling the wider pressures on teachers and leaders. The Child Poverty Strategy, the introduction of our strategy for ‘Giving every child the best start in life’, reform to children’s social care, and the expansion of access to specialist mental health professionals will enhance teachers’ day-to-day experience and strengthen their ability to deliver.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the rates of teacher retention amongst primary school educators.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has published detailed plans on how we will recruit and retain more teachers in our 6,500 additional teachers delivery plan, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving. Better retention of teachers and leaders keeps the skills and expertise they have developed in classrooms, underpinning high quality education for every child.
We will promote best practice in workload and wellbeing management, including flexible working opportunities, and tackle the external pressures where schools are filling the gaps.
The department also recognises the important role which pay, and financial reward play in attracting and retaining teachers. We are offering targeted retention incentives worth up to £6,000 after tax for the subjects and areas with greatest need, and we have implemented above inflation pay increases over the last two pay rounds where we accepted the School Teachers' Review Body recommendation of a nearly 10% award for school teachers and leaders
The last workforce census (June 2025) reported one of the lowest leaver rates since 2010, with 1,700 fewer teachers leaving the state-funded sector. More teachers are also returning to state schools than at any point in the last ten years. The latest data showed 17,274 teachers returned to the classroom.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the rates of teacher retention amongst secondary school educators.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has published detailed plans on how we will recruit and retain more teachers in our 6,500 additional teachers delivery plan, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving. Better retention of teachers and leaders keeps the skills and expertise they have developed in classrooms, underpinning high quality education for every child.
We will promote best practice in workload and wellbeing management, including flexible working opportunities, and tackle the external pressures where schools are filling the gaps.
The department also recognises the important role which pay, and financial reward play in attracting and retaining teachers. We are offering targeted retention incentives worth up to £6,000 after tax for the subjects and areas with greatest need, and we have implemented above inflation pay increases over the last two pay rounds where we accepted the School Teachers' Review Body recommendation of a nearly 10% award for school teachers and leaders
The last workforce census (June 2025) reported one of the lowest leaver rates since 2010, with 1,700 fewer teachers leaving the state-funded sector. More teachers are also returning to state schools than at any point in the last ten years. The latest data showed 17,274 teachers returned to the classroom.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to produce a Teacher Retention Strategy.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
The department has published detailed plans on how we will recruit and retain more teachers in our 6,500 additional teachers delivery plan, which is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/every-child-achieving-and-thriving. Better retention of teachers and leaders keeps the skills and expertise they have developed in classrooms, underpinning high quality education for every child.
We will promote best practice in workload and wellbeing management, including flexible working opportunities, and tackle the external pressures where schools are filling the gaps.
The department also recognises the important role which pay, and financial reward play in attracting and retaining teachers. We are offering targeted retention incentives worth up to £6,000 after tax for the subjects and areas with greatest need, and we have implemented above inflation pay increases over the last two pay rounds where we accepted the School Teachers' Review Body recommendation of a nearly 10% award for school teachers and leaders
The last workforce census (June 2025) reported one of the lowest leaver rates since 2010, with 1,700 fewer teachers leaving the state-funded sector. More teachers are also returning to state schools than at any point in the last ten years. The latest data showed 17,274 teachers returned to the classroom.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of levels of consistency in the (a) classification and (b) processing of safeguarding allegations in national institutions on the adequacy of levels of safeguarding.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is committed to strengthening safeguarding practices across all institutions and ensuring children are kept safe from a range of harms. This requires a cross-government and cross-sector effort, and we are taking forward an ambitious range of measures to improve safeguarding and child protection.
Through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we are strengthening multi-agency safeguarding arrangements and improving information sharing between statutory partners. We are also taking forward work to safeguard and protect children from harm in out-of-school settings. The Department for Education last year launched a Call for Evidence to gather views on potential approaches to strengthen safeguarding in these settings, including on potential regulation.
The new Child Protection Authority will also improve national oversight and leadership of child protection across the country. A consultation on proposals is currently underway. Delivering on other recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, we have also put in place stronger disclosure and barring checks for adults working with children and introducing a mandatory duty to report child sexual abuse.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to support leadership development pathways for teachers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
High quality professional development is important for teachers at all stages of their careers, ensuring they receive appropriate support and can continually improve their practice. The department offers five leadership National Professional Qualifications (NPQs), which help boost teachers’ and leaders’ knowledge and confidence as they progress into senior leadership roles, alongside five specialist NPQs for those who want to broaden their existing knowledge, expertise, and skills in specialist areas of leadership practice outside traditional leadership roles.
We are currently reviewing the NPQ suite to ensure courses remain up to date with best practice and evidence, support clear progression between leadership levels, and draw on insights from programmes such as the School Trust CEO programme
We will deliver a targeted package of interventions for Excellence in Leadership that update standards, strengthen professional development and support wellbeing. This includes additional investment in an early headship coaching, a new mentoring framework, and piloting a targeted place-based headteacher retention incentive. Together, these interventions reflect the government’s commitment to supporting high-quality leadership across the system.
Asked by: Cameron Thomas (Liberal Democrat - Tewkesbury)
Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of installing renewable energy sources at MoD Ashchurch on i) energy cost savings and ii) carbon reduction.
Answered by Luke Pollard - Minister of State (Ministry of Defence)
The Vehicle Storage and Support Programme (VSSP) at MOD Ashchurch is delivering modern, sustainable storage solutions for the Army’s Stored Fleets. The project, on track for completion in March 2027, includes the installation of a photovoltaic (PV) array to support the energy needs of new Controlled Humidity Environment (CHE) units. These units will reduce vehicle degradation and maintenance requirements, delivering long-term cost savings and improved operational readiness.
While the CHE units will increase electricity usage, the PV array—anticipated to produce 1,542,499 kWh annually—will meet 60% of this additional demand. This will reduce reliance on external electricity, enhance energy resilience, and avoid 427,735 kg of CO2 emissions per year.
Furthermore, all new buildings that are part of the VSSP will incorporate energy-efficient systems, including heat recovery, air source heat pumps, and advanced lighting, reducing fossil fuel use and cutting carbon emissions by a third. These measures will ensure that the increased energy usage is offset by significant cost savings, improved efficiency, and a reduced carbon footprint, supporting the Department’s sustainability objectives.